ENGLISH SCHOOL, CIRCA 1613 'The Tower Portrait' of Sir Walter Raleigh (Ralegh)
Estimate: |
£4,000 - £6,000
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Hammer price:
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£7,000 |
Bidding ended. Lot has been sold.
ENGLISH SCHOOL, CIRCA 1613 'The Tower Portrait' of Sir Walter Raleigh (Ralegh) standing three-quarter length holding a book in his left hand and resting his right hand on a table covered in a green cloth, with an astronomical compendium to one side, inscribed with a Greek citation, the date '1613' and "AE SVA 59", oil on canvas, 108cm x 85cm Provenance: Possibly the painting referred to by Aubrey in 'Brief Lives' with a suggested line of descent from Dr. Robert Burhill, passed to his widow, passed to her second husband Mr. Tussell and then left to her step-son, John Tussell, Aubrey's attorney, who mentioned the painting to Aubrey himself. The painting was lost from sight until 2012 Private Collection, Switzerland This enigmatic portrait of a Jacobean gentleman is a subject of a detailed article published in the British Art Journal, Volume XVI, no. 3, published Winter 2015/16, pp.60-67, in which the author presents a convincing ar-gument to support the assertion that this portrait represents Sir Walter Raleigh during his incarceration in the Tower of London.
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